


Heaven Tagged

by Skylar0Grace



Category: Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Supernatural
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2010-03-04
Updated: 2010-03-04
Packaged: 2017-11-27 16:25:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 17,451
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/664036
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Skylar0Grace/pseuds/Skylar0Grace
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Buffy has been brought back from Heaven and she has more than one hitch-hiker. One of them goes by the name of Mary Winchester and she needs to speak to her family. Can Buffy help her?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Pre ‘Supernatural’ and Season 1-6 of ‘Buffy the Vampire Slayer’. Based on a challenge issued by Phoenix.

* * *

Buffy stood in her room in front of her mirror staring blankly at her reflection. From behind her closed bedroom door she heard a door in the corridor close and she moved quickly, for reasons she didn’t understand, to sit on her bed. The comforter was plush and soft but to her it may as well have been made out of nails.

She picked up a picture frame from her bedside table and stared at the picture. It was a photo of her, Willow and Xander and they were laughing. How she wished she had something to laugh about. No, even if she did, she wasn’t sure she could. How was it possible to laugh now? After all she had seen?

Buffy put the photo frame back and stood, walking slowly over to the bulletin board that hung on her wall. This had been her life. Numerous pictures taken at various stages but it seemed like somebody else’s life. The joy that shone through the pictures seemed foreign to her, as if it was something she’d never experienced before.

Buffy looked in horror as the flesh began to melt away from the smiling faces, their grim visages grinning as if from beyond the grave. She saw a blur of something, like a smudge of smoke in mid-air and Buffy squeezed her eyes shut, hoping that the horrible nightmare would end and she would find out that she wasn’t even there. That she was back where she was, where everything was simpler.

When Buffy opened her eyes, the smudge was gone and the photos had returned to normal. Buffy looked at the pictures and though she didn’t know why, she found it worse than the horrible alteration that she’d seen.

_“Osiris! Here lies the warrior of the people. Let her cross over.”_

_A wrinkled, desiccated hand…a body encased in black clothing. An orange mist swirls around the decomposing head, tendrils tracing even the individual strands of hair. The mist moves further along the body until it is completely covering it. Features begin to become clearer until Buffy’s eyes open and she gasps. She looks around and notices the four solid walls surrounding her, suffocating her. And she begins to panic._

_Buffy pounds frantically on the sides, small whimpers all she can manage, as the realisation sets in. She’s buried alive. And she knows what she has to do; she has to dig her way out. She’s done it before and it was as terrifying then as it is now, only that was when her nightmares came to life. She’s always remembered it as a nightmare, the breaking of her skin as the wooden splinters pushed themselves into the newly torn hands, the suffocating silence and the all-consuming darkness. But she doesn’t want to do this again._

_Buffy bangs as hard as she can on the lid, the piece of wood just in front of her face, before she begins tearing away the cloth lining, the tearing sound echoing in her ears. She knows she doesn’t have a lot of time, air is minimal and even if somebody had been lying on her grave, they wouldn’t have heard her under all that dirt._

_Buffy punches the exposed wood and eventually hears the wood crack. As her hand punches through the lid, dirt rains down on her and she acknowledges the pain in her hands. This definitely is not a nightmare._

_~_

_Buffy walks down the once familiar streets. She used to walk these streets, protecting the people behind the closed doors from the horrors of the night. But the streets look different now. There is so much light, heat, smoke. Buffy’s sure she can hear someone screaming but it sounds so distant and for the first time she wonders if this is hell. Buffy stops and leans against a parked car, her brain refusing to stop whirring and the cacophony of her thoughts are drowned out by the sudden noise coming from somewhere nearby. She instantly puts her hands over her ears as the piercing noise seems to hit right down to her bones before she realises that the noise is coming from the car she’s leaning on._

_An armed man appears in front of her and she wants to ask him for help, ask him to tell her where she is. But he’s yelling and shaking his gun at her. She can’t really understand him and besides, she doesn’t know who she can trust. Her vision is blurry and every noise is slightly muffled but she hears the gunshot and she knows what that means. Buffy doesn’t even hesitate as she sprints as far away from him as she can._

_~_

_Buffy notices a group of demons, at least she thinks they’re demons, and finds that her feet are leading her to them. Her brain is telling her to run but she doesn’t. They’re standing in a circle, their faces lit up by the bright flames nearby and one of them is talking to the others, riling them up as he loads a gun._

_“All in one quick, really, *really* violent fell swoop,” she hears him say as she comes to stand behind some of the pack. “Gentlemen, start your engines.”_

_Buffy notices the four bikes in opposing corners as their engines rev and she follows the chains attached to their bikes to the person standing between them. Her breath catches in her throat and she can’t believe what she is seeing. Standing in front of her is…her. She tries to understand how she can be in two places at once when she hears, “Bye-bye, Slayer!” Buffy takes a step forward and the other her calls out. Buffy can’t hear her but she is sure she’s saying her name. She knows she has to stop herself from being killed, even if it doesn’t make any sense and she does the first thing she thinks of. She screams._

_Her ‘No!’ pierces the air and the demons that had previously not noticed her turn around. The bikes move off in their directions and she can’t even look at the carnage left behind. Fear starts building in her gut and as the demons move to get a better look at her, she sees the leader grin._

_“Another one for the fire, boys.” He grins sadistically. “Tear it up.”_

_Buffy runs. She couldn’t save the other her but she can try and save herself. Nothing makes sense in this crazy world and it seems that all she is doing is running. Running for her life. She doesn’t feel strong and powerful anymore, she doesn’t feel the strength of generations of Slayers in her blood. She feels scared, alone and the feeling is overpowering._

_~_

_Buffy looked down and frowned. This was the spot, she’s sure of it. She remembers the blood, the night tearing as hell bled in and the flash of lightning signalling the horror about to be unleashed. She remembers running down the platform and diving off into the blinding light at the end._

_Buffy closed her eyes against the assault of memories and remembered turning from Dawn to see the holes opening up in the sky and the quiet resolve as she looked back at her beautiful sister. Even now she could hear their last conversation as though it was happening at this moment, the pleading in Dawn’s voice as she begged._

_“Buffy, no.”_

_Buffy felt her heart breaking as she heard her sister’s voice catch. “Dawnie, I have to.”_

_“Buffy?”_

_Buffy frowned. That wasn’t how it was supposed to go. Dawn didn’t say that and it sounded closer. She opened her eyes and turned around and saw Dawn standing at the other end of the platform. She was standing there, like she had been the last time she’d seen Dawn but she looked different; older._

_“Buffy…Buffy…how…?”_

_She wasn’t real. Buffy tried to convince herself but the person in front of her looked so real, so sad._

_“Is it you? I mean really?” She takes a step toward Buffy. “What are you do-”_

_The tower shakes and Buffy looks back toward the end of the platform. Maybe she could have it again?_

_“No! Don’t!” Dawn shrieks. Buffy looks back at her._

_“Don't jump, Buffy, don't move! Just walk to me. Please!”_

_Buffy turns away and looks back down at the ground. It’s a long way down and she begins to wonder if it will hurt if she jumps._

_“Please?”_

_Buffy continues staring down. She remembers the pain from the first time she jumped, the electricity shooting through her, her whole body feeling like it was on fire and then…_

_“I'm your sister. Dawn. We were up here ... together, and then ... you went away. And you don't wanna do that again. I don't know how you're back, but you are, and please, just stay still.”_

_The tower shakes again, making Dawn shriek and though a part of her automatically feels like comforting the obviously distressed Dawn, a bigger part wants what she had._

_“Or-or move. But-but towards me. Because the tower was built by crazy people and I don't think it's holding up very well. Talk to me. Say something!”_

_And then Buffy has to ask the question that she’s been wondering since before Dawn arrived. “Is ... this hell?”_

_She hears Dawn’s confusion and turns to look at her. She’s sure that everything she’s feeling is written on her face but if this is just some elaborate torture than she couldn’t care less what fake-Dawn sees._

_“Is this hell?”_

_“No! Buffy, no”! She takes a step forward. “You’re here ... with me.” She takes another step forward and Buffy can feel the muscles in her body tensing in case this fake-Dawn attacks. “Whatever happened to you, whatever you've been through, it's ... it's over now. You're-”_

_The tower shakes again and Dawn shrieks, the sound piercingly loud and shrill even to an already sensitive Buffy._

_“We have to get off this tower!”_

_Buffy turns to look down again and remembers the place before this, before the horror she is now faced with. ”It was so ... clear ... on this spot. I remember ... how ... shiny ... and clear everything was.” But the memory is cut short as the blood and violence and noise of the last couple of hours filters through. “But ... now ... now...”_

_“Buffy ... please ... listen to me.”_

_Buffy closes her eyes, doesn't turn around. What did she do to deserve this torture? Why?_

_“You told me I had to be strong ... and I've tried. But it's been so hard without you.”_

_Buffy still has her eyes closed and frowns at the sorrow she can hear. The fake-Dawn is sounding remarkably like real-Dawn_

_“I'm sorry. I promise I'll do better, I will! If you're with me. Stay with me ... please. I need you to live. Live! For-”_

_The tower shakes again, hard. Dawn screams, crouches down and Buffy knows; the tower is gonna fall._

_“Buffy!”_

_The shrill scream breaks through to Buffy and she whirls around, looking at the scared girl at the end of the tower. “Dawn.”_

_“Buffy!”_

_Now Buffy knows. She doesn’t know how but this is Dawn, her sister, the one she has to protect. “Dawn!”_

_Buffy runs across the platform to Dawn, pulls her up and into the body of the tower. They run around one bend, pause and look around. She needs to find a way down and obviously there isn’t time to take the stairs. Even if she can just get Dawn off…she spots a rope on a pulley._

_Buffy holds onto Dawn, leaps off the tower and grabs the rope. They hang there for a moment, then the rope begins to move and they plummet downward. Dawn screams. They fall for a while and then something catches and they stop. They both look toward the ground and Buffy instantly calculates just how far it is. She might be able to survive but she’s not sure about Dawn. She needs to find another way to get down, and soon, when the choice is taken from her. Something above her breaks and they fall with Dawn screaming the whole time. Buffy does her best to cushion her sister’s fall._

_Buffy hits the ground and the air is forced from her lungs. She tries to suck air back in, to relieve the pain in her chest even if it’s momentary and she sees the tower above her move. Toward them. She grabs Dawn and pulls her out of the way before the twisted metal can crush them. The noise that follows is the loudest she has heard since she woke up and Buffy tries to drown it out the best she can._

_Once she is sure they are out of danger, Buffy collapses to the ground, sucking in lungfuls of air as the noise dies down._

_“Buffy?”_

_Buffy looks at her sister, unsure of what to say, of what to believe. Dawn smiles in disbelief._

_“Buffy. You ... you …” She reaches out and touches Buffy’s cheek, an action which should have been comforting but Buffy can’t feel anything inside. “...you're really here.” She leans over and hugs Buffy, crying softly as her grip tightens. “You're alive, and you're home. You're home.”_

_A memory of ‘home’ flashes in Buffy’s mind and although she doesn’t understand what has happened, she knows she’s not going back. She can’t find it within herself to feel the joy that Dawn does, knowing what she’s lost._

Buffy woke suddenly and tried to shake the memories from her mind as she sat up. She was done, everything had been settled and she had been home. And now she wasn’t. She’d been pulled from there and forced back here. Buffy took a deep breath before lying back down. She closed her eyes and as she was drifting off, she could have sworn she heard Spike’s voice in the background.

~

Anya and Xander crossed the porch and began walking down the stairs

“I think Willow's wrong. I don't think she's particularly normal at all.”

Xander sighed and turned to her. “Well, she just got back. Give it time. I bet in a week she'll be our little Bufferin again.”

“Oh yes, cause six or seven days, that's all you really need to get over eternal hell experiences.”

Xander heard a noise and stopped, his eyes searching for the source. “Who's that? Spike?”

Spike continued to lean against the tree in Buffy’s front yard and quickly wiped his eyes as Xander and Anya approached.

“What are you doing out here? I hope you're not going to start your little obsession now that she's around again.”  
Spike’s already thin thread of calm broke and he grabbed Xander and spun him around, slamming him up against the tree and holding him there as he leaned in close.

“Hey!”

“You didn't tell me,” Spike spat at Xander, ignoring Anya’s protests. “You brought her back and you didn't tell me.”

“Well, now you know,” Xander replied, looking at Spike.

“I worked beside you all summer.”

“We didn't tell you. It was just ... we didn't, okay?”

_“How long was I gone?”_

_“Hundred forty-seven days yesterday. Uh ... hundred forty-eight today. 'Cept today doesn't count, does it?”  
Spike looked down at her damaged hands and knew, even if she wasn’t saying anything, that they were hurting – just like she must be._

_“How long was it for you ... where you were?”_

_She paused just for a moment. “Longer.”_

“Listen. I've figured it out.” Spike, still glaring, let go of Xander but didn’t move out of the way. “Maybe you haven't, but I have.” Xander and Anya saw the moisture glistening in his eyes as he pointed back toward the house. “Willow knew there was a chance that she'd come back wrong. So wrong that you'd have ... that she would have to get rid of what came back. And I wouldn't let her. If any part of that was Buffy, I wouldn't let her. And that's why she shut me out.”

“What are you talking about? Willow wouldn't do that.”

“Oh. Is that right?”

Xander ignored the obvious sarcasm. “Look. You're just covering. Don't tell me you're not happy. Look me in the eyes, and tell me when you saw Buffy alive, that wasn't the happiest moment of your entire existence.”

Spike scowled at Xander and walked off. “That's the thing about magic,” he threw over his shoulder, “there's always consequences.”

Spike sat on his bike and looked back at them. “Always!”

He started up the bike and Xander and Anya watched as he rode off, his coat billowing behind him in the wind.

~

Willow and Tara lay asleep, their bodies recovering from the very long and draining day. They heard a loud smashing sound and awoke to shards of glass falling down on them.

“Buffy?” Willow asked as they sat up in bed.

Buffy glared at them eerily, her silhouette lit by the bright moonlight and casting shadows across her face. “What did you do? Do you know what you did? You're like children. Your hands smell of death. Bitches! Filthy little bitches, rattling the bones. Did you cut the throat? Did you pat its head?”

They looked on in fear as Buffy grabbed a crystal ball off the table next to her and threw it at them. It hit the wall above them and shattered, the noise covering their shrieks.

“The blood dried on your hands, didn't it?”

“Oh my god, oh my god,” Tara said breathlessly from beside Willow.

“You were stained. You still are. I know what you did!”

Willow jumped out of bed and turned on the lights; the yellow glow bathing the room and Willow looked at Tara and then back at the empty space where Buffy had been standing.

Tara looked down at the bed. “The glass. There's no glass.”

Willow looked to Tara and they both moved down the corridor to Buffy’s room. They opened the door silently and a sliver of light fell on a deeply sleeping Buffy. Willow looked at Tara before pulling the door closed and heading back to their room.

“Okay, what in the frilly heck is going on?”

“Maybe we dreamed it,” Tara offered as Willow closed the door.

“Right. Right. Wrong! Different brains.”

“Oh yeah.”

Tara moved over to the table and ran her fingers along the fully intact crystal ball.

“Well ... what was it talking about? Did you understand it?”

“Well, I understood the words, but ... no.”

Tara gasped as the wall behind Willow moved as though there was something crawling behind the paint. Willow and Tara watched as it moved along until it hit the door and disappeared.

“What was that?”

“There's, there's something in the house.”

“What is it after? Is it ... Buffy?”

“I don't know,” Tara replied soothingly. Willow picked up the phone on the bedside table.

“That's it, I'm gonna call. I hope Xander's up.”

~

“Xander, are you up? I can't sleep.” Anya leant over a sleeping Xander. “Play a word game with me.”

Anya lay back on her pillow and looked at the ceiling. “Xander, are you awake? Okay, I'm going to describe an adjective with accurate but misleading clues, and then you have to guess what it is. Xander? Xander?”

Anya poked him but still got no response. The phone rang and Anya jumped. Xander sat up awake.

“Huh? What? Do what?”

“That oughta do it,” Anya said dejectedly.

Xander reached across her and grabbed the phone. “Hello?”

“Xander, it's me, Willow.” Anya stood and walked out of the room. “We were just attacked.”

“Attacked? A vampire?”

“No, it was Buffy. Or something that looked like her.”

Xander sat up on the end of his bed, completely awake.

“Like she was possessed,” Tara offered.

“And then she just disappeared,” Willow finished, “a-and, and we saw something... a little ... there's something in the house. “

“In the house? All right, Willow, you need to get out of there, just get everyone out.” Xander heard Anya behind him laughing and wondered in the back of his mind what was so funny. “Wake up Buffy and Dawn. Don't make a big deal- ”

Xander turned to the still laughing Anya and saw her now greyish-white eyes staring back at him as she ran a butcher’s knife across her face, the red blood standing out against her white skin.

“Gah!” Xander dropped the phone and grabbed the knife from her. Her body instantly crumpled to the ground and he noticed her cheeks were unmarked. “Anya!” Xander knelt beside her. “Anya!”

Xander didn’t notice the bulge in the carpet move away from them and into the kitchen.

“Xander? Xander!” Willow called helplessly from the phone.

~

“Very bad. Very, very, very bad. Bad.”

Anya rubbed his back as she sat on the am of his chair in Buffy’s backyard across from Willow and Tara. “He's all traumatized.”

“Well, whatever it is, it's not the, the traditional haunting, because i-it's not limited to one specific place, and there's not, you know, a dead person.”

“Not any more,” Tara said, looking across at Willow.

“I bet it's a hitchhiker.”

“A hitchhiker?” Xander asked as he looked up at Anya.

“Um, standard way to travel through dimensions. Uh, some demon-thing sees someone moving between worlds, and grabs on for the ride.”

Willow could feel the guilt rising already. “You mean like, some hell-beastie rode in with Buffy? Like ... we're responsible for this?”

“Assume crash positions,” Tara said quietly.

“I think we shouldn't've brought Buffy back. I knew it was going to end badly. I should've said something.”

“Okay, fine, but ... what are we gonna do?” Xander asked, trying to deflect Willow’s glare from Anya. “I mean, I'm feeling the need for some vigorous doing, you know?

“It's okay. We, we just kill the beastie and then all is good. We're rolling in puppies! ... Right?”

Xander looked at Willow. “Can we do that? Kill it?”

“We killing something?” Buffy asked from behind them, holding a coffee mug.

“Buffy! You're not supposed to be up,” Willow exclaimed

“How, how are you feeling? Are you okay?” Tara asked quietly.

Buffy blinked and chose to ignore the questions. “So what are we killing?”

“A demon you brought back from Hell with you,” Anya said, apparently oblivious to the look Willow gave her.

“Oh.”

“It's not like she's making it sound.” Willow said quickly. “A little haunting-type stuff. Boo-scary, everything's normal.”

“You shouldn't worry about it,” Tara added.

“Um, I remember something, last ... night, uh...”

Buffy trailed off as she remembered the photographs and the still unsettling feeling she still had. She’d woken up this morning and had seen a smoky smudge at the foot of her bed. She’d tried to focus on it but it had disappeared again.

“Buff?” Xander asked when she didn’t finish.

“Um ... the photographs. O-of us. They changed.”

Tara sat forward on her chair. “How did they change?”

“They were ... dead. I-I-I mean, we were dead. Like, um ... dead bodies? But, but then they were okay. So I just, you know, figured it was me. That I was going crazy.”

“Well, maybe you are. Going crazy. From Hell.” This time Anya saw Willow’s angry look. She looked back up at Buffy quickly. “No. You're fine.”

“You are,” Willow reinforced. “And Buffy, we're, we're so glad.”

“Yeah. This thing, this haunting thing, we'll fix it, and then we'll still have you back, which is ... it's so important.”

“Yes.”

“It's wonderful.”

Buffy looked at them all silently and blinked. “We should get to work.”


	2. Chapter 2

* * *

Dawn walked over to where Willow, Tara, Xander and Anya were researching. Across from them sat Buffy, staring into space and Dawn shot a worried glance in her direction before looking over Willow’s shoulder.

“What's the list?”

“Possible hitchhikers,” Anya said off-handedly.

“Demons that might have come out of Hell at the same time Buffy did.”

“‘Skaggmore demons, Trellbane demons, Skitterers, Large and Small Bone-Eaters’ ... If we get to pick, I say we go with the Small Bone-Eaters.”

“Well, that just means they prefer to eat things with small bones, like you.”

“That's just what we have so far,” Willow said, “Five species of demons that have been known to move transdimensionally. Two of them may be invisible in this dimension, and, uh, two others can perform spells to alter perception.”

“Well, that's four. What's the other one like?”

Tara’s face scrunched up. “Uh, like the others, only dripping with viscous fluid.”

“Eww.”

“So, should we concentrate on how to kill those, or should we try to find more?”

“I'm not sure,” Willow began, “Maybe ... maybe some of us can, uh, keep going finding more, and the others—”

“I miss Giles,” Buffy said suddenly. 

“Oh. He's coming back, I talked to him.” Willow gave her a small smile, “I know I'm a kind of poor substitute, but until then, we'll get it done.”

Everybody looked at Buffy expectantly and she felt the same overwhelmed feeling that she’d been felling since she got back. “I think I should patrol.”

A hurt look crossed Willow’s face. “Well, I know we'll find something soon.”

“Yeah.”

Buffy paused before heading awkwardly to the door. 

“Uh, do you want us to go with you?”

“We can do that.”

Buffy squashed down the panic rising in her chest. “No. I-I need to go. Sorry.”

“You should go,” Dawn agreed as Buffy walked out the door, the belling jingling as the door closed. “I'll be safe here with the others. Don't worry about me.” Her eyes briefly flashed a greyish-white before she smiled maniacally.

~

Buffy distractedly walked through the cemetery. She had been seeing the smudge all day and the last time she had seen it, she could have sworn it was a person. She saw a small blur out of the corner of her eye and dropped into a fighting stance. The smudge of smoke appeared again but this time it thinned out until Buffy could see the form of a beautiful woman.

She looked to Buffy and smiled a warm smile, the type her Mum used to give her. She stepped forward and instead of her muscles tensing, Buffy’s relaxed. She wasn’t sure who the woman was but she was certain she didn’t want to harm her. The woman began speaking and Buffy frowned. Either the woman couldn’t speak or Buffy was deaf. An owl hooted nearby and Buffy let out a deep breath. At least she wasn’t deaf.

The woman began moving closer, her hands waving around as she tried to get Buffy to understand her. Buffy shook her head.

“I can’t hear you.”

The woman stopped and looked at something behind her. Buffy looked but couldn’t see anything out of the ordinary. The woman looked back once before turning and disappearing. Buffy blinked and when she opened her eyes again, there was still no one there. She frowned again, hoping that like the pictures, it was related to this demon and not to her going crazy. Then again, she was in the cemetery.

~

“I found one of those 24-hour places for coffee,” Anya said. “Remember that bookstore? Well they became one of those books-and-coffee places, and now they're just coffee. It's like evolution, only without the getting-better part.”

Anya walked past Dawn to the table where everyone was still researching. “Uh, coffee, coffee, coffee, um, hot chocolate for Dawn.” She turned to Dawn “You're too young for coffee.”

Dawn turned around, her eyes glowing white as she glared at them. “Idiot.”

“You can have my coffee,” Anya said in a weak voice.

Dawn’s voice held a low harsh tone. “All of you did it. You stupid children. Did you think the blood wouldn't reach you? I smell the death on you. Look at what you've done!”

Dawn opened her mouth and flames shot out towards the table. Everyone ducked and the books on the top of the piles caught on fire. Dawn collapsed to the ground and Xander jumped up.

“Fire! Fire! Fire!” He grabbed a cushion from one of the chairs and began stamping out the flames as the others rush to Dawn.

“Dawn!” 

“Oh my god, oh my god.”

Xander stamped out the last of the flames and Willow and Tara helped Dawn sit up. 

“That was it,” Willow said. “Li-like Buffy, with fire.”

None of them saw the bulge under the floor move away from them towards the door. 

“Is she okay?” Xander asked.

Anya turned to Xander with a concerned look on her face. “Did I look like that? I hope I didn't look like that.”

“No, I'm sure you looked really glamorous cutting up your face,” Willow snapped.

“What ... what is it? What's happening?” Dawn asked as she tried to sit up.

“You'll be okay,” Willow reassured.

“I bet you'll experience some dry-mouth.” Everyone looked at her. “Fire,” she clarified.

“Was it ... did the demon thing have me?”

“It's okay. It's okay.”

“Yeah. It's gone.”

“Yes, but where did it go?” Anya said looking around. “I mean, evil things have plans. They have things to do.”

~

Xander looked out of the blinds of the Magic shop. “It's getting light out. Buffy's probably on her way home from patrolling.”

Tara glanced across to him. “I like sunrise better when I'm getting up early than when I'm staying up late, you know? It's like ... I'm seeing it from the wrong side.”

Xander looked as though he was wrestling with himself and Tara tilted her head to the side. “Hey, Tara,” he said finally, “this is probably crazy ... but Spike got me to thinking. This spell we did ... it's having consequences, isn't it? I mean ... it sure seems like it. And I was just wondering ... did you know that this might happen?”

“No!”

“Do you think ... could someone have known?”

“Willow is a talented witch, and she would never do anything to hurt anyone.”

Xander raised his hands as though in defence. “I know, I know, huh? Backing off quickly, hands in the air.” He sighed. “I just meant-”

“Thaumogenesis!” Willow shouted as her head shot up from the counter. Anya and Dawn, who were asleep at the table, jerked awake at her shout.

“She's possessed!” Anya declared.

“Thaumogenesis.” Willow said again as she held up a book.

Dawn turned to Anya. “You're right.”

Xander and Tara walked over to Willow and she frowned at the accusation.

“I'm not possessed. I-I think I figured it out. This demon, i-it's not a demon we let out. It's, it's a demon that we made.”

Xander looked surprised. “We made a demon? Bad us.”

“Thaumogenesis is when doing a spell actually creates a being. In this case it was like, a, a side-effect, I guess. Like a price.”

“What?” Dawn asked confused. Willow took a deep breath.

“Think of it like, the world doesn't like you getting something for free, and we asked for this huge gift. Buffy. A-and so the world said, 'fine, but if you have that, you have to take this too.' And it made the demon.”

“Well, technically, that's not a price. That's a gift with purchase,” Anya said smiling.

Dawn looked back to Willow. “Um, but, if we made the demon, how come we can't see it? I mean, all we see is us. Doing stuff.”

“Well, I, I think it's out of phase with this dimension. Like, its consciousness is here, but, but its body is caught in the ether between existing and not existing.”

“It doesn't have a body, so it's borrowing ours. I-it borrowed Dawn and Anya...”

“Or, or it's manifesting copies of them, like, like it did when Buffy came at us...”

“It's using them to do stuff. To scare us, attack us.”

“So we need to uncreate it, right?” Xander cut in. “We need to send it the rest of the way out of our world.”

“Uh-huh. Except that ... it's linked to the spell. So, if we sent it away ... it would be like the spell doesn't exist. Like it never happened.”

“Like it never brought Buffy back,” Dawn whispered.

Willow looked to her sadly and nodded. Dawn stood angrily and rounded on Willow, her hands on her hips as she spoke. “You can't do that. You can't think for a second that you're going to do that.”

“Dawn- ”

“If you think you can give her back to me and then take her away again? No. That's worse than if you'd never brought her back. You can't mess with people's lives this way!”

“Dawn, we're not going to do it that way,” Willow said. 

Dawn turned around to the others behind her. “How can you let her do this? How can you even talk about letting her go?”

“Honey, you're not listening. She said we will find another way.”

“We will,” Xander said confidently.

“Then do it!” Dawn yelled.

Willow looked back up from her book with a smile. “Wait. Wait. Dawn. Everybody hold on.”

“What?” Anya asked. “Why are you smiling? That's inappropriate.”

“Because it's temporary.”

“What is?” Xander asked.

“The demon. I-it's gonna dissipate. The only way for it to survive on this plane is if it were to kill the subject of the original spell.”

“It would live if it killed Buffy?” 

“That's not gonna- ”

Xander lifted his head and his now white eyes blazoned in satisfaction. “Thanks for the tip.”

He collapsed to the floor and a small bulge moved unnoticed across the floor towards the wall.

~ 

Buffy opened the door and walked in placing her keys on the table and started up the stairs. Behind her, a white mist slowly coalesced into a vaguely human shape, reaching out its arms toward Buffy as it moved up the stairs after her. 

Buffy opened the door to her darkened bedroom and paused to look at the pictures on the wall again. The faces were still normal and Buffy felt a small relief knowing it was linked to the demon.

“You don't belong here,” a voice whispered from behind her.

Buffy turned to see a demon-mist floating in the door. She threw out a punch but her fist went straight through it. A tendril shot out and hit her, sending her flying back into the furniture behind her. She recovered her balance and turned back around trying to see the mist again. It slowly formed near her and Buffy lashed out again. It disappeared and reformed behind her. She turned around and punched but her hand went straight through it. 

The demon hit her again and sent her tumbling into the hallway, head first into the wall. Behind it, a woman appeared and grabbed hold of the demon. There was a small struggle before both disappeared. Buffy looked back into her room and saw nothing. She frowned and walked back into her room. A couple of minutes after she began searching her room the voice whispered again. 

“Did they tell you, you belonged here? Did they say this was your home again?”

The mist began forming behind Buffy again.

“Were you offered pretty lies, little girl?”

It swirled around her and wrapped around her waist. It tightened its grip until it was crushing her.

“Or did they even give you a choice?”

~

Xander drove angrily down the street.

“Xander! Drive faster!” Dawn scolded from the backseat.

“I can't!”

“I could drive faster and I can't drive!” Dawn yelled. 

“She's right, you're like a snail,” Anya said frustratedly, “A snail who's driving a car very slowly. Come on, give it the lead foot! We've got to help Buffy with that demon you sent after her!”

Xander gripped the steering wheel tighter. “I did not send the demon, I was possessed. The demon used me to eavesdrop on our conversation.”

“Great, so now what? We have to talk in some sort of anti-demon secret code?”

Xander briefly looked across at her, sarcasm written all over his face. “Ood-gay idea-yay, An-yay.”

“Stop talking wrong in Pig Latin and drive! Buffy's in trouble!” Dawn yelled.

“It's okay, Dawnie. Willow and Tara are doing a spell.”

“You sure it won't send Buffy back?”

“No, of course not. It's just that she can't fight this thing if it's all ... misty, so they make it more solid, so Buffy can kick its fully embodied ass.”

“You sure it'll work?”

~

Willow and Tara sat on the floor of the Magic Box with candles lit all around them.

“Child of words, hear thy makers. Child of words, we entreat. With our actions did we make thee, to our voices wilt thou bend.”

~

Buffy struggled in the demon’s grip, air rapidly becoming an issue. A blurry figure appeared behind them and gripped the demon. It tried to shake out of the grasp, Buffy subsequently getting tossed around. The figure pulled again and both the demon and figure disappeared as Buffy was swung to the side. She hit her bed and automatically rolled across it and dropped off the other side onto the floor. Buffy looked up from her position on the floor and saw the demon becoming more solid.

~ 

“With our potions thou took motive, with our motions came to pass. We rescind no past devotions, give thee substance, give thee mass.”

~ 

Buffy reached under her bed and pulled out a battle-axe. She slowly stood as the demon taunted her.

“You're the one who's barely here. Set on this earth like a bubble.” 

Buffy swung her axe at it but it passed straight through it. Behind her, in the corner of her room, a figured appeared again. The woman became more visible but she looked tired.

“You won't even disturb the air when you go.” 

Xander, Anya, and Dawn rushed in Buffy’s bedroom door. Buffy looked toward them quickly.

“Go! Take Dawn out of here!”

~

Willow closed her eyes whilst Tara chanted. Her head tilted back slowly.

“Child of words, hear thy makers. Child of words, we en...treat...” 

Tara trailed off as she noticed Willow, a haze of golden light gathering around her. She pulled her hands out of Tara's and her eyes snapped open, the black orbs seeing nothing and everything.

“Solid.”

~

The demon suddenly became fully solid. It looked like the rotting corpse of a woman and Buffy wondered if it was the woman from the cemetery. Buffy tried to hit it with the axe but the demon grabbed the axe handle. They struggled over it for a moment before the demon let go and hit Buffy, making her drop the axe. Buffy took the blow and squared off against the demon. From the corner of the room the woman remained unnoticed. She saw Buffy stand and she smiled a soft smile. She turned around and vanished. 

The demon hit Buffy again and Buffy fell to the ground. She grabbed the now in reach axe and jumped up from the floor, swinging as she did. The axe connected with its neck and the head came cleanly off, bouncing across the floor of her bedroom. Dawn quickly turned away, grabbing onto Xander for support as Buffy looked back down at the body. She’d just killed a demon trying to kill her and she still felt empty. 

“That's probably the sort of thing I'm not supposed to see, right?” Dawn asked.

~

Buffy walked softly down the stairs the next morning. Nobody else was awake yet and she wanted a few moments to herself. She turned on the coffee machine and listened to the hiss as she sat down and waited. When the green light flicked on, she stood and grabbed a coffee mug.

“Morning Buffy,” Dawn said as she entered the kitchen. She gave her a soft kiss on the cheek before setting up breakfast. Buffy kept her back to her as she made the coffee, taking a deep breath before she had to face her sister.

“You have to help me.”

“Help you with what?” Buffy asked as she turned around. Dawn’s hand was frozen midway to her mouth as she frowned in confusion. Standing slightly behind Dawn was the woman from the cemetery. She smiled softly.

“You have to help me,” she asked again. Dawn put down her spoonful of cereal and looked behind her. She turned back to Buffy.

‘What is it Buffy?”

Buffy looked back to Dawn. “You don’t see her?”

Dawn frowned and looked behind herself again. She twisted slightly in her chair and looked back at Buffy. “See who?”

“Never mind,” Buffy said as she shook her head and averted her eyes.

Throughout breakfast, the woman remained in the back of the room. A couple of times she spoke but she only repeated the same phrase. Buffy did her best to ignore her but she remained persistent and Buffy was beginning to wonder if she really was going crazy. No one else seemed to be able to see the woman.

“Please, I need your help,” she asked again. 

Buffy groaned and walked upstairs. She went into her bedroom and sat on the bed. She saw the woman reappear at the foot of her bed and before she could get any more information out of her, Willow entered.

“Buffy, are you alright?”

Buffy pointed to the woman. “There’s something here.”

Willow looked around alarmed. “Another demon?”

“She doesn’t look like a demon.”

“She?”

Buffy shrugged. “It’s a blonde woman.”

Willow stood and walked out of the room. The woman stepped forward but Willow came rushing back in and passed straight through her. She placed some candles on the floor and began lighting them. As Willow did her spell, Buffy watched as the woman sat before her.

“I need your help.”

“How?”

“Please-”

She suddenly winced in pain and a small green light shot through her. Buffy glanced back at Willow and saw her head bowed in concentration. Her lips continued to move and the woman gasped in pain, her fists clenching and knuckles white.

“Stop!” Buffy shouted. 

Willow continued to chant and the light shot through the woman again. She gasped and fell forward panting heavily as Willow looked up. Buffy reached out to comfort the woman but her hands passed right through her. Willow looked up at Buffy unconcerned.

“I can’t tell you much; just that something is attached to you. I’m gonna do some research into it okay. Is there anything you need?”

Buffy just looked at her with an open mouth. How could she be so callous? Didn’t she hear the pain the woman was in, didn’t she feel it? Willow picked up her things and walked out of the room. Buffy followed her and shut the door. She turned around and the woman looked up at her.

“Please,” she asked, “I need your help.”

“What can I do?”

“I need to see my family; I need to tell them…”

She began sobbing and Buffy looked over at her. For the first time since coming back she felt compassion. The woman looked over her shoulder and looked back at Buffy.

“I’ll be back. Don’t forget.”

She turned and disappeared. Buffy sat quietly just thinking about everything. This was all becoming too much; it was too much to carry. She’d carried the weight of the world on her shoulders for six years. She’d died and been brought back twice and the knowledge of what she had just left behind was suffocating her.

Willow knocked on the door and entered slowly. She sat on the end of Buffy’s bed and Tara gave her a soft smile as she stood behind Willow.

“I think it’s a spirit Buffy. I don’t know what she wants but I’m looking into ways to send her back.”

“It will be okay Buffy,” Tara said softly.

Buffy looked up at them expressionless.

“I’ve found some information about Hunters.”

“Like Cain?” Buffy asked.

“Sort of. These are more Hunters than mercenaries. They track down and kill things to keep people safe, usually just spirits and the odd vampire or werewolf. I read about a place called the Roadhouse. Supposedly Hunters go through there so I was thinking I might head out there and find out how to get rid of your spirit.”

Buffy remained silent, lost in thought. Maybe this is what she needed, to be away from her heavy load while she settled back into things. She’d rather do it on her own but if she had to have Willow there then she would have to cope with it.

“Can I come with you?”

Willow’s mouth fell open and her eyes widened. “You want to come with me?” Willow looked up at Tara before her gaze was set on Buffy again. “I don’t know how long I’ll be gone Buffy. It could be a couple of weeks.” Buffy looked down at her hands. “What about Dawn?” Willow asked finally.

“I can take care of Dawn,” Tara offered. Buffy glanced up at her and gave her a thankful look.

Willow’s eyes darted to the left and right and then back again as she tried to put everything together. Buffy had been different since she’d gotten back but Willow had assumed that she’d need time to adjust to not being tortured in hell. She didn’t know what it would have been like but Angel was so wild when he came back. Buffy had said he was like an animal. Buffy had been gone almost as long as Angel so what sort of things had she had to deal with? Maybe going on a road trip with her best friend, taking time out from the hustle and bustle of life, would help.

“Okay,” Willow agreed. “We can leave in a couple of days—”

“No!” Willow and Tara looked startled and Buffy took a breath. “I just mean, we should leave now, get on the road while we still have daylight and try to get there as quickly as possible.”

“What about Dawn? Don’t you want to say goodbye?”

Buffy blinked and thought how to best answer that. “We won’t be gone long so it will be fine if I don’t.”

Willow shot a look at Tara. “Okay,” she told Buffy, “I’ll just pack a bag and we’ll go.”

Willow and Tara stood and left the room and Buffy stared down at her hands. She hoped she was doing the right thing. The woman appeared at the foot of Buffy’s bag as she packed her bag.

“Are we going somewhere?”

Buffy looked up at her. “Yeah, my friend is trying to find a way to get rid of you.” Buffy paused. “She won’t be able to will she?”

The woman shrugged sadly. “I don’t think so.”

Buffy stuffed a couple of singlet tops in her bag. She’d actually lost weight since she died and some of her clothing was too big now. She added some long sleeved tops and her leather jacket before zipping it up. She looked up at the woman.

“Where is your family?”

“I don’t know,” she said sadly. “It has been a long time since I died but I know they don’t live in our house anymore. That was in Kansas.”

“So, do you think they’re still in Kansas or have they jumped states?”

The woman sat down on the bed sadly. “I don’t know.”

Buffy placed her bag next to her door and on top of her weapons bag. She wasn’t sure if they’d run into trouble but she wanted to be prepared.

“What is your name?” Buffy asked.

The woman smiled. “Mary.”

“Well, Mary, I’m Buffy, the Vampire Slayer.”

Mary laughed a soft laugh. “I know. I’m honoured to meet you actually. I came from a family of Hunters but we’d always thought you were a myth.”

“You were myth-taken,” Buffy said softly. The last time she’d said it, it had been with more mirth. It had been when she’d actually felt alive.

“I know where you were--” Mary said.

“Are the family you want to see Hunters?”

Mary decided to let her deflect. “I hope not. I never told my husband about any of it. I didn’t want to raise my boys in that life. My parents were killed because they followed it.” Buffy nodded. “It’s a lonely life and a dangerous one. Unfortunately even I couldn’t escape it.”

There was a soft knock on the door and Willow entered. “Ready Buff?”

Buffy cast a quick look back at Mary before nodding and picking up her bags with ease. She followed Willow silently down the stairs and onto the front lawn. Tara was putting Willow’s bag into the boot of Buffy’s dark blue 4WD and stepped aside to allow Buffy access. She put her bags neatly beside Willow’s and put on her dark sunglasses. Buffy glanced back at her house. She’d left town after she’d died the first time. She’d left town after she’d killed Angel. Maybe she really would be back.

Buffy climbed into the passenger seat and watched as Mary materialised on the back-seat. Buffy turned her face away as Willow and Tara said goodbye and Willow walked round to the driver’s side of the car.


	3. Chapter 3

* * *

Dean let out a breath and glanced once more around the graveyard. On his left he could only just see his father carefully concealed by a bough that had fallen on a crypt. Sam was somewhere behind him but Dean knew that he was crouched in exactly the same position, ready to spring up when the moment arose. Unlike, his brother and father though, Dean was antsy. He could barely contain himself and he desperately wanted it to show up. He needed it to show up. He needed it to show up so that he could get the hell out of the town he was in and put as much distance between himself and the memories that, even now, were threatening to resurface.

They were just under an hour away from his childhood home and Dean found it incredibly difficult to believe that he was the only one affected by the close proximity to so many unwanted memories. John had remained silent, calm, as though this town was just like any other, and Sam….Dean shook his head. If Sam looked one more time down that highway toward Lawrence, Dean was going to deck him. Yeah, he had to get out of the town before he broke. The demon appeared cautiously in front of them and Dean saw the almost imperceptible nod from John.

“Showtime,” he whispered.

~

Buffy looked across at a sleeping Willow before looking back out at the road in front of her. She really didn’t want to stop; stopping meant Willow waking up and continuing to observe her in what she assumed was a surreptitious manner. But the petrol light had begun to flash and her stomach was screaming for food. Buffy glanced into the backseat of the car only to sigh with frustration. Mary had seen something and disappeared again. She seemed to be disappearing more and more often and for longer periods of time. It had now been a number of hours since she had seen her and as annoying as it was to have someone only you could see, Buffy missed the conversation.

Buffy took a right at a sign that promised food, petrol and a bed and inwardly groaned as Willow sat up. The redhead glanced out of the window and noticed the change of scenery before looking back at the road they had just left. She glanced at Buffy.

“Are we stopping soon?”

Buffy nodded. “Yeah, petrol light came on and it’s around breakfast time.”

“How far out of Lawrence are we?”

Buffy took a deep breath. She still wasn’t sure it was the right decision but Mary had mentioned she’d come from Lawrence and Buffy had managed to convince Willow it was better if they could get her to pass on before trying another exorcism. She was just trying to buy time and she suspected Willow knew that. Willow continued to glance at her as though she was afraid Buffy was developing Stockholm Syndrome and Buffy had tried not to talk out loud to Mary - the last few hours had definitely been easier in trying to accomplish that goal.

“About an hour.”

Willow nodded absentmindedly and looked out the window. She was willing to let Buffy stall for a few hours. The attachment and, moreover, lack of fear Buffy was showing toward the spirit was beginning to have Willow concerned. It shouldn’t have been so difficult for her to remove the spirit. It was a simple spell and Tara had even been there to amp her power but it was as though she was trying to move a city; the spell failed and had left her confused and annoyed.

Willow saw a small diner beside a dingy-looking motel and pointed to it. Buffy only nodded in return and manoeuvred the 4WD into the parking lot. Willow inwardly sighed. She and Buffy used to be able to talk for hours on end about absolutely nothing at all but it seemed that since she had gotten back she'd withdrawn from everybody. She knew Hell would have been bad, excruciating even, but she thought that Buffy would accept the offer of support; confide in her, lean on her. 

They climbed out of the car together and Buffy stretched her legs. She wasn’t used to be cooped up for such a long period of time and she was feeling the ache in her muscles. She had needed to patrol last night; not just for the exercise and the need to protect people but for her own sanity – she needed a release. Buffy stretched her arm muscles and silently prayed for some demon to come charging out of the bushes straight for them. When nothing happened Buffy turned disappointedly toward Willow and ignored the confused expression on her friend’s face. 

They walked silently toward the diner and as they entered, they ignored the eyes focused on them. Buffy and Willow found an empty booth toward the back of the diner and the curious gazes fell away one by one until it was just the two of them. Buffy looked out of the small, dirty window to the carpark and felt a sense of déjà vu. It was exactly how she’d been feeling from the moment she’d come back and she wondered if she’d ever look at the world the same again; if she was ever going to feel like she was living her life instead of watching it slip by.

A waitress approached the table and Buffy almost choked at the familiar uniform on the sandy haired girl. She smiled weakly and asked for a piece of plain toast. Buffy didn’t even spare a glance at Willow as she pointedly ordered something more substantial and turned her gaze back toward the carpark. There were several cars parked, most of them older models that barely looked like they ran, and she supposed they must stand out like a sore thumb. Neither of them were dressed like the rest of the patrons and Buffy began evaluating her wardrobe. If she wanted to blend in a little more with the towns they passed through, and she did, she was going to need to invest in something flannel.

Buffy looked back as Willow grabbed her hand and spoke in a low voice, positive that her friend’s better-than-average hearing would pick up the diminished decibels.

“Buffy, something’s here.” 

Buffy’s eyes scanned the room but she couldn’t see anything out of the ordinary; in fact, she couldn’t even feel anything. A tall man, younger than the both of them, walked past their table on his way back from the bathrooms and Willow gripped Buffy’s hand tighter.

“That’s him. There’s something… I can just feel something off with him.”

Buffy watched as he sat down in a booth a stone’s throw from theirs and scowled at the man sitting beside him. He pulled a plate back to himself, ignoring the other man’s grin and used a coffee mug to cover his grin as the older man sitting opposite them scolded the barely penitent man beside him. If Buffy didn’t know any better, she’d say they looked like an ordinary family having breakfast. The two younger men looked like brothers and the man sitting opposite them was definitely old enough to be their father.

Buffy tried to stretch out her ‘spidey-senses’ and pick up on whatever Willow was feeling but there didn’t seem to be anything demonic about the younger man. She turned back sceptically to Willow, only to be met with pleading eyes. The waitress returned with their food and Buffy absent-mindedly chewed on her toast as she watched the men interact. She couldn’t see the older man’s face and only caught glimpses as he turned to address the waitress but he looked like an older version of the younger two. They started squabbling about something but the older man leaned forward and they ceased almost immediately. He said something in such a low voice that even Buffy’s enhanced hearing couldn’t pick up and the youngest stood reluctantly and left the diner.   
Seeing her opportunity, Buffy stood also and quickly threw a bunch of notes on the table. It was more than enough to cover their meal and a generous tip and without a word to Willow, she followed. Behind her, she barely heard the waitress exclaim that it was too much before Willow interrupted her with praise on excellent service, and Buffy disappeared down the side alley where the younger man had gone. She saw him only a few paces in front of her and was beginning to doubt his villainy until she saw his hand reach into his jacket pocket. She made out the rough shape of a gun and she responded quickly.

Her body raced forward, blood pumping quickly through it as it relished the action, and her hand lashed out. She held him pinned to the wall by his throat, his feet only just touching the ground as she looked into his eyes. She could see only surprise and confusion and as he moved to pull his hand out of his pocket, she reached in and grabbed the gun away. It dropped to the ground almost noiselessly and she heard Willow run down the alley.

“Buffy, what is he?”

Buffy shrugged and noticed his face turning redder as he struggled against her realising that his oxygen was slowly becoming cut off. His baby blue eyes looked so innocent and Buffy wondered if Willow had gotten it wrong. She’d seen innocent looking demons before but this one didn’t feel evil. He didn’t even feel demonic.

“He doesn’t feel like a demon…”

Buffy heard the sound of two guns cocking behind her and a deep voice filled the silent alley.

“That’s because he’s not.”

Buffy didn’t even need to turn around to know who was behind her or what weapons they were using. But the materialisation of Mary beside her did make her do a double take. The comforting smile fell from Mary’s face as she looked at the man pinned to the wall. As she took a step closer, Buffy loosened her grip and addressed Mary.

“You know him?”

“Sam?” Mary whispered. Her eyes quickly scanned the alley and fell upon the other two men, a soundless, ‘John’, escaping her lips as she took a step forward.

Buffy frowned and looked at the man in her grasp. “Sam? Oh, that Sam?”

She released her grip and he dropped back to the pavement, rubbing his throat as he sucked in lungfuls of air. He glared up at her and moved as quickly as possible to his family. Buffy watched as Mary moved closer to John, a tear falling down her face as her hand reached out to touch him. She looked back at Buffy with a bitter-sweet smile.

“My family.”

Buffy looked at the weapons trained on her and the charm bracelets on their wrists. They hadn’t seemed at all fazed that she’d thought Sam was a demon and as that thought ran through her head, it all clicked into place like a jigsaw puzzle.

“But they’re Hunters.”

Mary looked back at them and a small frown crossed her face. Buffy noticed John frown at her seemingly ill-directed speech and the older boy looked behind him as if he were expecting to see someone else. Mary looked at her two sons before looking back at John.

“How John? How did you get into this life? I tried so hard to keep it from you.”

Buffy heard a noise behind her and had to reel in her instinct to lash out defensively as Willow drew up beside her and placed a hand on her arm.

“Buffy?”

Buffy looked them over once more. “Winchesters. They're the ones we've been looking for.”

Neither John nor Dean lowered their guns and all three men regarded the two women in front of them carefully. Buffy watched as another tear fell down Mary's face and as she turned her head away from her husband and toward her eldest son, she slowly reached out a hand. Mary flinched as she heard a noise behind her and she disappeared. 

Buffy held John's eyes as she spoke. “ I'm Buffy, the Vampire Slayer, and this is my friend Willow.”

Sam looked up sharply. “Slayer? I thought they were just a myth.” On John's slight incline of the head in Sam's direction, Sam's brain raced quickly as he tried to piece together all of the information he had read. “A line of warriors, right? One girl chosen in the whole world to fight demons. I was sure that the Slayer was a myth.”

“I'm not.”

John's eyes narrowed as he looked at the tiny woman in front of him. “If someone that powerful existed, we would have heard of them, especially if they were on our side.”

“One girl chosen in all the world...are you sure about that? Out of the billions of people on the planet, it's possible you've never run into a Slayer.”

“But someone would've. At least one Hunter would've.”

“I've known a few demon hunters and you don't really seem to be a close-knit bunch.”

Willow stepped forward with her hands raised. “Look, you don't have to believe us but it's still the truth. Can we at least discuss this somewhere else? The alley isn't really the best place.”

John watched them carefully before lowering his gun and signalling Dean to do the same. He wasn't sure if he believed their story or not but he would at least have the opportunity to find out on ground he was more familiar on. He could run a battery of tests on them back at the motel and if they really were demons, he'd stand a better chance of protecting himself if he was within arms reach of his weapons.

“Just follow us.”

The Winchesters walked out of the alley and Buffy and Willow followed them as they crossed the carpark and entered one of the rooms of the motel next to the diner.

~

Kiara Rose walked into the bathroom and sighed. In her fifteen years cleaning motel rooms she’d seen a lot of things, some of the weirdest being satanic symbols drawn underneath the rugs, on the ceilings and the walls as well as other disgusting displays of humanity. But she’d never encountered salt at the windows and doors. The stuff was everywhere and Kiara knew it was going to take a while to clean it all up.

She went quickly to work on the bathroom, scrubbing down the tiled room in record time before standing back to give the room a once over. With a small smile, she picked up her bucket of cleaning products and moved onto the main room. There was a lot of work to be done and as she made the first bed, she decided the order with which she was going to clean the room. Hospital corners tucked in on the first bed and she’d just started straightening the sheets on the second when the door to the room opened. Kiara looked at the older man in the doorway, a group of people just behind him, before she turned back to the bed.

“I’ll be another ten minutes folks,” she announced good-naturedly, “I’ve really only just started here.”

She looked up to see the older man standing beside her curiously. 

“Actually, there’ll be no need for cleaning today. I must've forgotten to put the sign on the door.”

Kiara was surprised. She’d rarely had occupants who hadn’t wanted their rooms cleaned; most were just glad that they didn’t have to do it themselves. She looked back at the two men and two women standing in the doorway before looking up at him. Whatever they wanted to do, she wanted no part of. She nodded briefly before picking up her supplies and walking out of the room.

~

“Come in.”

John watched as both women stepped over the salt line and let out a breath. Perhaps they really were the real deal. He took out five bottles of water from his bag and passed them around to the occupants of the room. Buffy and Willow sat at the small table and Sam propped himself up on his bed. As John sat on the bed next to Sam, he noticed Dean lean against the wall behind him.

“So, Slayer, huh? Do you just travel around and hunt things?”

Sam looked back at Buffy as he answered his brother's question. “No, Slayers are usually stationed, aren't they?”

Buffy nodded. “I'm in a town called Sunnydale. The town was actually built on top of a Hellmouth so I have more than enough bad guys to keep me busy.”

“I didn't think that Slayers worked with others.”

Buffy glanced over at Willow briefly before looking back at the Winchesters. “They didn't, but I do. Probably why I've survived as long as I have.”

“Does your family know what you do?” Dean asked as he took a drink from the water bottle.

“My sister is all I have left and she knows. She tends to get into trouble a lot so I needed her to be on the look out for danger.”

Dean snorted. “I hear that!”

Sam scowled at Dean and Buffy gave a small laugh. Willow's eyebrows shot up in surprise at the melodic sound and she looked across at Buffy. There was a small smile creasing the corner of Buffy's lips – it wasn't much but it was more than she had been used to seeing since Buffy had been back. She looked across at Dean and noticed the smile he was giving Buffy in return. They were somehow connecting over something as trivial as sibling responsibility and a part of Willow was jealous. Buffy had been hard to reach, emotionally, and this man didn't even seem to be trying and he was already cracking the armour that Willow was being held at bay by.

John watched as the seemingly stoic woman in front of him seemed to be brought to life by such a simple conversation and he wondered what had happened to her to make her shut herself off from the world. Had it been her calling or was it something else. John had the feeling that this woman, this Slayer, at the top of her game was going to be indeed a sight to behold. Even as closed off as she was, she still burned brightly. He gave a small nod in their direction before excusing himself to go to the bathroom. The conversation picked up again and John heard Sam deliberately turn the conversation around to Slayer lore and away from himself. 

John locked the door and quickly leant against the sink, his head bowed as he squeezed his eyes shut. He was trying as hard as he could but everything was reminding him of Mary. The town, his sons - even the tiny, blonde Slayer. The wounds felt as fresh as the day he had lost her and a tear slipped down his cheek as images of his wife floated through his head. 

John angrily wiped his face with his hand and turned the tap on. He splashed some cold water on his face, relishing in the feeling of the cold water on his face instead of the hot tears. He needed to hold himself together for his sons, especially Dean. He’d noticed Dean’s anger growing the longer they were so close to Lawrence but he believed that the longer he kept a cool, level head, the more likely that was to rub off on his sons - especially Dean. The job had been completed and if it had not been for them meeting the Slayer, they would have left town already, putting as much distance between themselves and Lawrence as possible.

John rubbed his face once more with the cold water and as he looked up to see his face in the basin mirror, he barely had to time acknowledge the black cloud behind him before it overwhelmed him, entering through his open mouth and causing him to take a couple of steps back. As he looked back up into the mirror, his eyes flashed gold once before a cruel smile spread across his face.

~

John walked back into the motel room and noticed Buffy glance at him with a small frown. He gave her a tense smile in response and tossed his car keys to Dean.

“You boys go down to the cars and get our gear. Let's see if we can help these ladies out with their problem before we head out.”

Dean nodded and began walking out, tugging on Sam's shirt as he walked past him. Sam protested lightly before grudgingly getting up and following Dean out. As the door closed behind them, Buffy looked cautiously at John, her eyes searching his face carefully.

“So, Slayer huh? Haven't met a Slayer in a really long time.”

“I thought you'd never met one?”

John waved his hand. “Just said that in front of my boys. Didn't want them to know just how powerful you were.”

Willow stood. “John?”

John's eyes flashed gold as his grin screamed danger and Buffy's blood ran cold. She stood slowly, a move that placed Willow slightly behind her. John just continued to grin.

“Guess we're about to test just how good you really are.”

~

“I can't believe we actually met a Slayer! Do you know how incredible that is?”

Dean shrugged as he fingered the keys in his hand, searching for the Impala's. As his fingers found it, Dean looked down at the keys in his hands and smiled at the familiarity. The Impala was his. It had taken a while for his Dad to find the replacement but just the act of being given ownership of his father's pride and joy was acceptance in itself. Hopefully his Dad would give him the opportunity to work a case on his own. As Dean opened the boot, Sam sighed and reluctantly reached in.

“I don't know why Dad even needs this stuff.”

“Because Dad asked us to.”

“But most of the stuff from the hunt is still in the room.”

Dean straightened. Sam looked back at him in confusion and noticed Dean's eyes searching his. He cast one look toward the motel room before quickly glancing back at him and Sam's mind went into overdrive to discern the look on his brother's face. When Dean broke into a run, Sam quickly grabbed the nearest rifle and slammed the lid of the boot, breaking into a run himself as he tried to catch up.

~

“I once met a Slayer. It was a while ago now but I still remember the look in her eyes as the life slowly drained out of her.”

Buffy heard Willow talking underneath her breath and watched as John cocked his head to the side. A small grin formed before Buffy saw Willow fly into the wall beside them. As Willow sat nursing her head, John grinned and turned back to Buffy. 

“This is gonna be just you and me.”

Buffy looked across at Willow and as their eyes met, a single thought floated through Buffy's head like a wisp of smoke., “ _Remember Eyghon._ ” 

Buffy turned back to John. “Bring it on.”

More quickly than she was expecting, John closed the gap between them and grabbed her by the throat. As his fingers tightened, Buffy kicked out, forcing him backward and putting some space between them. Blow for blow was traded and Buffy was dimly aware of the light banging on the door but her focus remained on John. She managed to get the upper hand momentarily and used it to force him backward into a wall, cringing for the injuries he was sure to have later. Willow gave her the smallest of nods, a barely perceptible move and Buffy aimed a punch at his chest, hearing a rib break and forcing the breath from his lungs.

Her hands wrapped around his throat and Buffy felt two things: she felt the power of the demon inside John begin to wane and she felt a cold feeling burst through her like cold air. As if he knew what she was doing, John grinned and a hand wound it's way into her hair, pulling back forcefully on the long blonde strands.

The cold feeling in her body seemed to sap her energy and her grip on John's neck weakened. She heard Willow call her name from the back of the room somewhere but it sounded faint and far off. Buffy blinked and as the room started to go darker, she knew she was on the losing side. The demon in John was powerful and wouldn't jump bodies unless it was forced and keeping John alive was a priority.

As her world started to dim, Buffy looked at the smirk on his face and the yellow eyes that seemed to burn into hers. Grasping at the last straw she could, she pulled John toward her and pressed her mouth to his in a last ditch effort to draw out the demon.

~

“ _Buffy!_ ”

Sam glanced worriedly back at Dean as the yell from Willow pierced the door. Dean banged harder on the door and tried the doorknob once more before he put his shoulder into the wood. On the third attempt to break down the door, Dean felt the weight of Sam's body and the wood cracked further. They hit the door once more together and the wood snapped underneath them, the hinges ripping away from the door frame and both felt as through they'd stepped into an alternate reality.

Pressed up against one side of the room was their father and Buffy, apparently lip locked, while Willow stood on the opposite wall, a small cut from her forehead the only visible sign of injury as she raised her head to look at them. Her lips continued to move in an almost inaudible chant and Sam looked across at his brother as he searched for answers.

“What the...?”

Dean stepped forward in confusion and watched as Buffy pulled away from John almost forcefully. John collapsed to the ground and held up his hand as Dean made a move toward him.

“Stay back!”

Buffy's head fell backwards and she wobbled on her feet before her legs buckled underneath her and she fell to the ground. As the final words fell from Willow's lips, Buffy's back arched off the ground and her eyes flashed gold once before a column of black smoke shot out of her mouth and escaped out the door. Her body fell back down to the ground and she remained motionless.


	4. Chapter 4

* * *

“What was that?”

Willow gave a small smile as Dean and Sam walked into the room. John sat up painfully and as Sam raced over to him and helped him to stand, Dean lifted Buffy off the ground and placed her on the closest bed. Her breathing was shallow and as the others came to stand around them, Dean looked back at Willow.

“Well?”

“A complicated exorcism. I had to bind it to Buffy's body first before exorcising it. Unfortunately, I'm not used to doing that, so wherever that demon is, it's hurting but not gone.”

Sam gave a short laugh. “Beats salting and burning.”

“You salt and burn demons?”

“No, but we do with spirits. We have to find out who they are first and then dig up what's left. Salt and burning usually does the job.”

“Huh. I wonder if that will work with the one we've got.”

“Got a spirit problem back home?” Dean asked as he uncapped the bottle of water on the bedside table.

“No, with Buffy. When I brought her back, we picked up a hitchhiker and a spirit. Managed to send the hitchhiker back but I can't get rid of this spirit.”

“Back from where?”

“We were fighting a big bad a little while ago and Buffy died.”

Dean choked on his water. “And you brought her back from the dead?”

Willow grinned. “It took a little while to figure out exactly how to do it but I managed it.”

John turned toward them. “She's supposed to be dead. What's dead should stay dead! You don't know what your dealing with!”

Buffy's eyes opened quickly and she sucked in a short, sharp breath. She saw several pairs of eyes looking at her and only relaxed when she met John's angry ones. At least they were no longer yellow. Dean helped Buffy sit up and offered her the bottle in his hand as Willow bristled and stood abruptly, stabbing a finger in John's direction. John, however, did not react.

“You don't know what you're talking about! I saved her from Hell. Literally. If I hadn't brought her back, she'd still be there and I was more than willing to have a couple of hitchhikers along for the ride if it meant getting her back. I didn't count on your wife being one of them but given the choice, I'd do the same thing over again. You don't know us, you don't know Buffy, and you have no idea what we've done for this world.”

Willow stormed out of the motel room and slammed the door behind her. The door frame rattled slightly before standing still and Buffy lifted her eyes to look at the three men in front of her. She saw the anger and confusion in John's and she cringed. She hadn't wanted to have this conversation now – in fact, she hadn't wanted to have it at all.

“Mary was in Hell?” John looked angrily to Buffy for answers. “I don't believe it! It's not possible!”

Buffy let out a breath, her voice not coming out much louder. “She wasn't.”

Sam leant forward. “What do you mean, 'she wasn't'?”

“Mary wasn't in Hell, she was in Heaven.”

“But you were in Hell, right?”

Buffy glanced down at her hands again and John sat forward on the edge of the bed.

“How did my wife get dragged out of Heaven if you were in Hell? You're lying about something and if it's about her being here...”

Dean watched her flinch. He couldn't imagine what Hell would have been like and to think that someone who looked as fragile as she did had been there...

“What was Hell like?”

The words slipped out of his mouth before he realised they'd even been there and he wasn't at all surprised to see the expressions he was getting. Buffy looked up to her left and he frowned. He wasn't really sure he believed that his mother was there with her but she did seem to be communicating with _someone_. 

“Tell them Buffy, they'll understand.”

Buffy looked back down at her hands as Mary's words poured over her. She closed her eyes and tried to slow her heart rate down so that she wouldn't start crying. She wasn't sure she'd be able to stop if she did. When she finally started speaking, Buffy heard a silence fall over the room, one that felt even more suffocating than seemed possible.

“I was happy. Wherever I... was... I was happy. At peace. I knew that everyone I cared about was all right. I _knew_ it. Time,” she paused as she searched for the right description, “...didn't mean anything, nothing had form. But I was still me, you know?” Buffy glanced up and noticed the three pairs of eyes still watching her. 

“And I was warm... and I was loved... and I was finished. Complete. I don't understand about theology or dimensions, or any of it, really. But I think I was in Heaven.” The small, sad smile on her face was replaced with a look of heartbreak as she looked back at her hands and stifled a sob. “And now I'm not. I was torn out of there, pulled out... by my friends. Everything here is hard, and bright, and violent. Everything I feel, everything I touch...” 

Buffy looked up at them and found herself answering the question Dean had asked moments before. Her eyes found his and she watched him look at her searchingly.

“This is Hell. Just getting through the next moment, and the one after that...” Her voice broke. “Knowing what I've lost...”

Buffy stood and walked over to the window, looking out at the carpark but not really seeing it. She took a deep breath and turned her head to the side. She couldn't face them but she needed them to know. To understand. 

“If they knew where I was, what they had done... They can never know. Never.”

A silence filled the room and Buffy saw Mary put a hand on her shoulder. She looked up into her face and knew that the look Mary was giving her was the same look her own mother would have given her if she'd still been alive.

“So, I guess you really did fall from Heaven.”

Buffy turned around in time to see John slap the back of Dean's head. Sam rolled his eyes and a small smile crept onto Buffy's face, easing the hurt in her chest as Mary began walking toward John and scolding him. Her amusement, however, was cut short as Sam looked around the room.

“Where's Willow?”

Buffy looked back out the window and noticed, for the first time, her missing 4WD. “The car is gone. I don't know – “ Buffy stopped as she turned quickly around to the waiting Winchesters. “You said you salt and burn the bodies, right?”

There was a second of confusion before John realised the implications of what Buffy was saying and he instantly grabbed the car keys. As he and Buffy headed for the door, a dark look fell over Dean's face and he and Sam quickly followed, the motel door standing open behind them.

~

John ran quickly through the cemetery with the expertise of a man who knew the layout intimately. He could see Dean running beside him as he dodged headstones and could hear Sam and Buffy running behind them. He cast another look at his son and noticed the dark look on Dean’s face; a look that worried him. Mary’s grave was just that to him – her grave. It’s where her body was buried but it wasn’t where she was, evidently.

Before now John had always believed that Mary was in Heaven, where she belonged, and apparently she had been. If Willow exorcised her from Buffy she would undoubtedly return and keeping her from pain now was the only reason he was trying to get to Willow as quickly as possible.

Mary’s headstone came into view and John saw a large pile of dirt beside it. The sinking feeling that they were too late began to settle until Dean put on an extra burst of speed and reached the hole first. He pulled out his gun and held it on the woman inside.

“Dean!” he yelled.

Dean ignored John as he drew up beside him and glared at Willow. Her expression was a mixture of surprise and determination and Dean could see the salt already haphazardly thrown on what was left of Mary’s corpse. The sight of his mother in the condition she was nearly made him throw up and he didn’t notice John still beside him as his gaze fell upon the same sight.

“Get out,” Dean warned.

Buffy came to a halt and her eyes quickly darted to Dean and John before she reached out a hand to Willow. Willow glanced up at her friend and then back at her hand before reaching out her own and allowing Buffy to almost effortlessly pull her from the grave. Dean’s gun remained trained on Willow and Buffy frowned in confusion.

“How dare you!” he spat out.

Willow glared back. “This isn’t right! A spirit shouldn’t have this much hold on someone without it being bad!”

“You’re defiling my mother’s grave!” he yelled.

Buffy watched as Mary stood beside her son. She reached out a hand to touch his face and almost as if he could feel her touch, Dean turned his face slightly, effectively pulling away from her. Mary’s shoulders slumped and she looked over at John.

“John, I’m not there anymore. _Please!_ ”

But her pleas were unheard by everyone except Buffy and Willow’s fists bunched defensively at her side.

“I’m looking out for my best friend! Her grip on Buffy is wrong!”

“I’ll tell you what’s wrong--” Dean began and Buffy looked at him in horror. 

She wasn’t ready for Willow to know where she’d been, the peace she’d known. The way she’d look at her… But Dean was oblivious to her, his eyes focused on Willow only.

“Dean put the gun down!” John cut in, “What’s done is done.”

He looked over at Buffy and she gave him the smallest of smiles in gratitude. John seemed more clear-headed than his son at this moment and was willing to keep her confession a secret from Willow just as she’d requested. The silence of the cemetery at that moment seemed deafening and Buffy acutely noticed the absence of any animal sounds as the wind softly blew at the leaves in the trees around her. It was as though everything was watching the scene at the foot of the grave with great interest; as if they knew something was going to happen.

Buffy felt her stomach clench and she looked over at Willow. Her eyes travelled down her form and she noticed how tense she looked. Her hands were still balled and as she looked at the ground around Willow’s feet, she noticed for the first time all of the books on the ground. There was one open and three poking out from her backpack. Various items were scattered around the book including a candle and a jar of herbs. Buffy could only assume that Willow had intended to do another ritual if the salt and burning had not done the job.

Willow’s gaze remained steeled as she stared at Dean. “She’s a hitchhiker. She shouldn’t be here and she doesn’t belong here. She’s connected to Buffy like a parasite—”

As if the world was moving in slow motion, Buffy saw the look of horror on Dean’s face before his finger pulled on the trigger. Buffy moved instinctively in front of her friend and she felt a searing pain in her chest before her body twisted of its own accord. 

And then she was falling. 

She had time to register the dirt walls surrounding her before she stopped and the searing pain was replaced with a sharper pain, one in a more specific location in her chest. Her heart felt like it was going to explode and she sucked in one painful breath before the pain stopped all together.

~

Four pairs of eyes looked into Mary’s grave with varying degrees of disbelief on their faces, their minds alerting them to the broken bone that had pierced Buffy’s chest, its tip barely visible, and the stillness of her body. A small trickle of blood had escaped her mouth and Dean looked back at the gun filled with rock salt in his hand. Any thoughts that were running through his head were halted by the short scream that came from across the grave.

Willow jumped down into the hole and stared at her friend. “Buffy?” She lightly shook her. “Buffy!”

The Winchester men watched as she pulled Buffy toward her, pulling the bone out of her back. Tears started falling down her face and as she wept, Dean noticed John step closer to him. It wasn’t menacing, nor was it comforting but Dean found himself turning his face toward his father’s searchingly. John simply held out his hand and Dean placed the gun carefully in it.

“No!” Willow screamed from the grave and all three men turned to see her looking up into the sky, her eyes turning black before a deep red settled.

Dark blue clouds formed above her in the sky and a single bolt of lightning shot out from them. John pushed Dean behind him as his other hand pulled Sam closer to his back. John had seen dark magic in action before and if anything was coming after his sons, it had to go through him first.

“By Osiris, I command you, bring her back!” Willow screamed at the clouds. More lightning shot out and the clouds continued to build. “Hear me! Keeper of darkness!”

John watched in horror as the clouds began to form into a face, the burst of lightning making it appear more human though John could clearly see that it was some form of demon. It looked down at Willow angrily though she appeared unafraid.

“Witch! How dare you invoke Osiris in this task!”

Willow sobbed as she looked momentarily back at her friend. “Please. Please, bring her back.”

“You may not violate the laws of natural passing.”

“How? How is this natural?” she asked as she pointed to the Slayer’s body.

“It is a human death, by human means.”

John felt Dean stiffen and he felt for his son. It was unintentional but Dean would carry the responsibility of this death around with him for the rest of his life. There were a few times when John had been responsible for the death of those he was supposed to protect, of friends, and he’d carried the weight around with him everywhere he went. He didn’t want that weight for his son but it was too late now.

“But I--”

“You raised her once when she was killed by mystical forces. This is not the same. She is taken by natural order. It is done.”

Willow let out a sob. “No. There has to be a way.”

“It is done,” the demon reiterated without remorse.

“No!” Willow screamed at him.

As she screamed, a shimmery column of energy shot out of her mouth and toward the demon. The demon screamed and disappeared in a final flash of lightning, the clouds dissipating as if they never were. Willow got to her feet and John felt the air around him change. It was as if it were electrified, small crackles popping in random spots. Willow reached for the top of the grave and hauled herself out. John noticed the blank expression on her face and he moved forward to grasp her arm softly.

“Willow, I’m sorry for what has happened but you need to understand that it was an accid--”

Willow looked up at him sharply, the blank expression unnerving him. “I need power.”

“Willow--”

Willow raised a hand and a purple bolt shot out from it rendering John immobile a metre off the ground. He looked down in alarm as he struggled against the magic, a feeling a dread settling on him as he realised that he was now incapable of protecting his sons. He looked over at Dean and Sam, only to find them transfixed with Willow. As he turned back to her, he noticed her kneeling on the ground beside her bag. 

The books were opening themselves and John’s horror grew as she put her hands on the books before they started to sink into them as if they were made of water. The text from the books seemed to crawl off the pages and up her arms, moving underneath her sleeves before reappearing at her chest and crawling over her face and into her hair. Her head fell back and her hair slowly turned black and as her head slowly tilted back down, John noticed the pages were blank.

Her black orbs turned to him and her newly-black hair appeared to move in a non-existent breeze. “That’s better.”

Willow moved over to the foot of the grave and stared down at Buffy. There was a small movement before a bone floated up into view. It stopped at Willow’s eye level and she tilted her head appraisingly, looking the bone up and down. She turned.

“Isn’t it amazing how something that is part of a foundation for one person can be the death of another? Two hundred and six down there but it only took one… and a broken one at that.” 

Willow looked back at the bone before turning around and John was surprised to see anger. He wasn’t surprised she was angry; no, he was just surprised to see emotion on her emotionless face. Her hair and eyes remained black but it was the expression on her face that made her truly terrifying. John struggled once more in a panic and Sam reached forward to pick up the gun his father had dropped. Willow gave a wry grin.

“Oh, no, little boys shouldn’t be playing with Daddy’s gun,” Willow said as another purple bolt shot from her hand and wrapped around Sam, the force of the blow pushing him slightly back before Willow turned to Dean. “Should they?”

Dean remained stoic and silent. As both John and Sam struggled to get free, Willow walked slowly toward Dean; stopping just before him and looking him up and down.

“You know, you were her type,” she said softly as she looked emptily into his eyes. He momentarily looked surprised before his expression fell blank. “A Hunter - strong, courageous; someone who could have fought side by side with her and known why she did it… someone who would have eventually broken her heart, just like the rest.” She turned her head to look toward the grave before looking back at him. “Though I guess you did do that, huh?”

She held up a hand and Dean was flung back between two trees. Vines wrapped around his wrists and ankles, holding him in place and Willow grinned as she watched him struggling in his bonds like a fly caught in a spider's web.

“Sometimes you just cannot get justice from the system. Sometimes it lets you down. But Buffy didn't deserve to die. Do you even know how much she has sacrificed for this world? How much she has given up so that this world is still here? The people she's lost, the weight of knowing that she can't save everybody. 

“Why is your life any more important than hers? Why is mine? There needs to be justice... I _demand_ justice!”

Willow took a step toward Dean and watched as he closed his eyes. The screams from John and Sam fell on deaf ears as she reached forward.

~

“You can't go back Buffy, not yet anyway.”

Buffy looked at Mary before looking back at her body lying in the grave. She took a deep breath and turned to Mary.

“I'm ready to move on.”

Mary shook her head. “No, you don't understand. You can't go back there yet. It's not your time.”

“But I'm not supposed to be alive now! I didn't ask to be brought back!”

“Buffy, everything happens for a reason. You won't understand everything at once but it all balances out in the end. Something big is coming-”

“No! I've had enough! Something big is always coming, but I don't need to be the one to prevent it. There were Slayers before me and there'll be others after. Please, just let me be at peace.”

Buffy eyes shone with unshed tears and Mary pulled her closer, enveloping her in a hug. 

“Buffy, peace will come. One day very soon you will understand the reason why you were called. It's not going to be easy, Buffy, but something big is coming, something that could end this world and you are the only one who can stop it, the only one who will know how.”

“Please... I don't want to go back again.”

“I don't want to go back yet either. You gave me my family back Buffy, you gave me an amazing gift but everything has to balance out and that gift will be taken from me. What you are destined for, the things you will give this world, are more than you could possibly imagine. Tell my family I love them.”

Buffy took a deep breath as a bright, white light surrounded Mary and as she closed her eyes against it, Mary disappeared. The darkness that had been eating her soul, the torment of the things she was suffering slowly melted away and she felt a release that she hadn't known she'd get again. Everything had a balance and as Buffy tossed the phrase around in her mind, she felt a strange pull backwards.

And then she fell.

~

“ _Why is your life any more important than hers? Why is mine? There needs to be justice... I demand justice!_ ”

Buffy sucked in a deep breath as the breath from her lungs came back full force. Her body arched off the ground and as the sound of screams filled her ears, she jumped up, her legs propelling her forward as she grabbed onto the edge of the grave and hauled herself up. The first thing she saw was the stunned and somewhat fearful expression on Sam's face before she noticed his bonds.

She stood. And as she did, a black-haired Willow came into view, the air crackling around her like bad static. Buffy saw Dean restrained and the pieces fell into place. She ran as fast as her body would allow and as she reached Willow, she lay a hand on her friend's shoulder. Black, empty eyes looked back at her and Buffy's heart broke.

“Will?” Willow blinked in disbelief before looking back toward the open grave. “Don't do this Will.”

“You're not real. Buffy is dead.”

Willow turned away and faced Dean but Buffy stepped between them, forcing Willow to look her in the eye.

“You don't understand. I didn't want to be here, I wanted to die. When I closed that portal, I didn't end up in a hell dimension. I... I think I was in Heaven.” Willow hard expression cracked and her eyes softened. “I wanted to go back there so badly. I wanted that peace again. But Mary explained something to me and now I understand.

“I might be just one grain of sand on a beach, just one Slayer in a long line of them, but I've been given a job to do that no one else can. Look at all of the things I've done since I was called. Sure, I messed up more times than I could count but I've also saved this world, saved the people in it and given them another chance. If I give up now, how many are gonna suffer because of me? How many will die?

“You're amazing Will. You've given me so many things from the first moment we met and we've come so far together. But I need you now. Something big is coming, something end-of-the-world big, and I was sent back to stop it. Mary sacrificed herself for me so that I could help this world but I don't think I'm gonna be able to do it without you. Please Will.”

Buffy held out a hand and watched as Willow lowered her head. She looked up at Buffy with her piercing back eyes and Buffy suppressed a shudder. A lone tear fell into the dirt on the ground and the black in her hair slowly receded until it was once again red. Willow opened her eyes as more tears fell and Buffy wrapped her arms around her, allowing Willow to draw comfort from her. They sank slowly to the ground together and neither noticed the Winchesters unite a short distance away.

Willow pulled back as a short, shrill ring sounded. Buffy took her mobile from her pocket and answered. “Hello?”

“ _Buffy! Something h-h-happened and-_ ” Tara's voice was cut off suddenly and replaced with a more panicked Xander. “ _Dawn's gone. We were about to drive her to school a few minutes ago when this green light just appeared out of nowhere and poof! Dawn was gone._ ”

Buffy looked up at Willow as she tried to suppress the fear that was creeping up. Everything did have to have balance and Buffy shook her head at the idea that Glory had re-emerged. Buffy stood stiffly and looked out toward the sun. She knew she should head home, try to get as much information as possible but instinct was telling her otherwise. Dawn wasn't in Sunnydale anymore.

“ _Buffy?_ ”

“Buffy, what's wrong?”

“Dawn's gone. Something took her...”

Willow stood quickly. “We need to get back quickly.”

Buffy shook her head. “No, she's not there.”

“Buff-”

“She's not there Will. I just... I need to get a hold of the powers.”

“Cleveland?”

Buffy frowned. “Huh?”

“There's a portal there. There's a lot of mystical energy there actually. It's probably your best bet.”

“Xand, Will's on her way. Get her anything she needs and see what you can find out.”

“ _What are you gonna do?_ ”

“What I have to.”

Buffy closed her phone and looked up at Willow. “Grab your stuff and head back. Find out as much as you can and call me and let me know. I'm gonna head out to Cleveland and see if I can't get some answers.”

“How are you getting out there Buffy? It's a long drive.”

“However I can. That's not important. Just make sure you keep me posted on what's happening.”

Willow nodded and turned back toward the grave. She averted her eyes as she neared it and packed her things as quickly as possible. Buffy turned around to head toward the 4WD to get her bag and ran into three Winchesters.

“I'll take you out there.”

Everyone looked at Dean and he merely shrugged. “We'll get you out there faster than you can walk. Besides, I kinda owe you for saving my life and all.”

“Let us help you Buffy. We may not fight the same sorts of things but we're on the same side and we have our own connections that just might come in handy.”

Buffy nodded. “Alright. Head back with Willow and see what you can come up with.”

Willow helped Buffy unload her bag from the 4WD and gave her friend a hug. “Call if you need anything.”

Buffy nodded. “Make sure you spring Faith if you need a Slayer. Patrolling's gonna get a lot harder without me there and we don't want another repeat like before.”

Willow nodded. As she climbed into the car, she looked back at Dean. “Look after her.”

Dean merely looked back blankly at her and Willow gave a soft sigh. Within minutes, both the 4WD and the Ute had driven out of sight and Buffy turned expectantly to Dean.

“Are we gonna go?”

“Sure.” 

As they climbed into the sleek, black Impala together, Dean looked at Buffy out of the corner of his eye.

“Dawn your little sis?”

“Yeah, how did you know?”

“I know the signs. They drive you crazy and make you want to scream but the minute they get into trouble, you can't think straight. All you want to do is get them out, even if it means that you have to sacrifice something.”

Buffy looked across quizzically as the trees swept by the Impala. “You have a sister?”

“He may as well be.”

Buffy gave a short laugh and leant her head against the window. It was going to be a long drive but as it stood, she didn't think she was gonna mind the company. And if she did have to prevent the end of the world sometime in the near future, she knew the Winchesters were going to be valuable allies. Mary was right; she didn't understand everything when she came back but as it unfolded around her, it began to make sense. 

She looked across at Dean and he grinned back at her. Yeah, everything was gonna be alright – she could feel it.


End file.
